In the Paint-Off, two small but world-wide and growing subcultures
come together in one event to watch members from their group do something they
love doing for no good reason other than because it is fun.

The first of the subcultures is the contemporary fine
art subculture, sometimes called the "art world". Members of
this subculture highly value originality and creativity but also enjoy self-analysis
and self-critique far more than most people. These proclivities
have led to the creation of works of "art" that have been interpreted
as various highly creative and original critiques of the possibility of both
originality and creativity –– just
to name one obvious and delightfully convoluted example.

Painters are only one retrograde subset
of this subculture which also includes people whose mediums are ideas,
events, sheet rock, bottle caps, beds, and videos. Even under the best
circumstances, fewer than 1 in 1000 who try will go on to earn a living from
making
"art". That doesn't stop would-be
artists from going to school for years and incurring great debt to earn degrees
at very expensive schools (when they don't drop out and start rock
bands).

People
who are "famous" in
the art world, like Jasper
Johns, or Paul
McCarthy are almost entirely unknown
to general public, and art world magazines like "Frieze" have
circulations that would be rounding errors for main-stream magazines.
This subculture generally enjoys novelty and will show up at an event just
to see something they've never seen before. You may find them drinking beers
together talking and enjoying the
"meaning" of things that most people would never expect could "mean" anything
at all, or finding humor and delight in situations most people would consider
at best merely strange and at worst disturbing and threatening. Portrayal of
artists on popular television shows are rarely
realistic and often present
only the most outlandish aspects of the subculture.

The second subculture is the "furries" otherwise
known as the "fury
fandom". Memebers of this subculture are fascinated by anthropomorphism
in all parts of culture from the Disney
(fox) Robin Hood to the San Diego Chicken.

The fandom values originality and creativity very highly. Much of the fandom
centers around creative production and conventions are filled with artists
selling paintings and drawings, plushies, sculptures, comic books, ears, tails,
etc.

Fursuiters are some of the most dedicated members of the fandom, spending
many hundreds or several thousands of dollars to have a full-body anthropomorphic
animal suit professionally made for them or taking the time and energy to learn
how to make their own suit.They will ware the suits to furry events or on
the street just for fun, an activity called
"fursuiting".
Fursuiters get a special kick out of fursuiting in situations where one would
ordinarily not expect to see them, like at an artfair.

The fandom has its own websites, and publications and more than 20
annual conventions all around
the world. Some suit makers like LatinVixen and White
Wolf are
known far and wide throughout the fandom for their artistry although outside
this subculture they are entirely unknown. Although the sexual fetish side
of the subculture is just one part among many, it is the part that has been
most widely publicized in the popular
media.

In the Paint-Off several painters from the artist community pair off with
several fursuiters from the furry fandom in spectacular mock-competition to
create portraits under the gun of an arbitrary time limit while drinking unlimited
quantities of beer and enjoying themselves immensely before a live audience.

(people always ask) I'm not a furry myself, i call myself a 'fan of the fandom' leading one friend to call me a "meta-furry" (sarah- you should googlemark that, stat!) This is one of my favorite pictures- me and sasha. (i'm the one dressed up in the "artist" outfit) here is the portrait of him as it turned out.